Printable Montessori Continent 3-Part Cards Make Geography Fun

Montessori continents 3-part cards in Korean and Chinese

Although geography has a reputation of being dry and boring, we discovered the secret to making continents fun for kids. I call it the “continent c’s”: consistent colors and captivating context. Montessori 3-part continent cards follow this brilliant color-coding system that’s used across their world maps and globes.

Printable Montessori maps, 3-part cards, and coloring pages in English, Chinese, Korean

Then comes the best part: we bring these land masses to life with stories, history, people, animals, and languages.

And according to my kids, coloring the continents is fun, too!

Coloring the continents - fun Chinese Montessori preschool printables
Continent coloring pages; Ferby triangular colored pencils; groove colored pencils (similar here)

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Montessori continents 3-part cards (Chinese, Korean, English)

Our printable Montessori continents 3-part cards are available in our family’s 3 languages, English, Chinese, and Korean! They’ve been carefully designed to be the perfect size for little hands. In each language version, the words are large and readable.

I’ll share tips on how to make the most of the Montessori continent printables to help your child or student build a love of learning!

What’s the meaning behind Montessori continent colors?

Montessori continents 3-part cards with simplified Chinese characters
Montessori 3-part continent cards in Korean (left) and Chinese (right)

As with all Montessori learning materials, the continents follow consistent colors.

With a standard reference, kids start to associate continent names with certain colors. This helps them memorize the location and names of the 7 continents!

Montessori continents and animals 3-part cards
Montessori continents and animals 3-part cards

Montessori continent colors and translations in English, Chinese, Korean

Here’s a list of the standard Montessori continent colors.

For families who are learning a new language with their kids, I’ve also translated color and continent names in simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, Hanyu Pinyin, and Korean.

  1. Orange: North America
    • 北美洲 (Běi měizhōu)
    • 북미 (Bugmi)
  2. Pink:  South America
    • 南美洲 (Nán měizhōu)
    • 남미 (Nammi)
  3. Green: Africa
    • 非洲 / 非洲 (Fēizhōu)
    • 아프리카 (Apeulika)
  4. Red: Europe
    • 欧洲 / 歐洲 (Ōuzhōu)
    • 유럽 (Yuleob)
  5. Yellow: Asia
    • 亚洲/ 亞洲  (Yàzhōu)
    • 아시아 (Asia)
  6. Brown: Oceania or Australia
    • 大洋洲 (Dàyángzhōu) or 澳洲/澳洲 (Àozhōu)
    • 호주 (Hoju)
  7. White: Antarctica
    • 南极洲 / 南極洲 (Nánjízhōu)
    • 남극 대륙 (Namgeug daelyug)
Coloring the continents - fun Chinese Montessori preschool printables
Art carts; coloring continents at our dining table; Montessori globe

Why Montessori 3-part cards are brilliant for kids

Each set of Montessori continent cards consist of 3 parts that can be displayed in a divided stand, tray, or folder. The 3 parts are:

  1. Continent picture
  2. Label (the continent’s name)
  3. Control card with picture and label together

Since the concept of continents are pretty abstract for a young child, we first focused on picture matching and recognizing the Montessori colors of each continent.

I also created a black-and-white version of the 3-part cards. These are perfect for coloring. Like most kids, mine love to color, so I knew this interactive version would capture their interest!

Gradually, my son learned the continent names and recognized the Chinese characters. Then he was ready to try matching the continent names.

Download Montessori maps and 3-part continent cards

Other supplies for the Montessori 3-part continent cards

Ways to make geography and continents interesting for kids

Montessori Animals of the World and Map

We highly recommend using the continent cards after starting with our Montessori Animals and Continents Printable Pack (Chinese, Korean, English). According to my son, the Montessori animal activity is “the most fun!” 🙂

Montessori maps and globes

Because kids need to see where the continents are in the world, our Montessori globe and Montessori felt world map have been a big help.

Stories about real people history, culture, food, and languages

We love making friends with different cultural backgrounds! But in our small, homogenous town, much of our diversity comes from books in our library.

When we read picture books that celebrate Asians and Asian Americans, we point out the yellow continent card and talk about the incredible diversity among the 48 countries. For example, Chinese New Year (春节 / 春節 / Chūnjié) and Korean New Year (설날 Seollal) are Lunar New Year celebrations that occur on the same day but with different cultural traditions.

Same goes for Africa when we read stories about Black history in English and Chinese. My kids remember the green continent card while learning about the uniqueness of different countries.

Cooking, eating, and reading books about delicious food are also great times to talk about the continents around the world!

Wood toys and Montessori printable continent activities
Colorful folders for animal 3-part cards; continent 3-part cards; open ended toys

How to organize and displaying Montessori 3-part cards with a folder

To make the cards attractive and accessible for my preschooler, the 3-part cards displayed in a small wooden card stand.

However, I also made folder templates that you can download, print, and use with other Montessori 3-part cards from our website! The folder template is included with the Montessori maps and 3-part continent cards!

Get the Montessori maps and 3-part cards here

More fun geography resources for kids:

What did your child think of the Montessori continents 3-part cards?

If you try this activity, please let us know in the comments below! What age(s) are your kid(s) and how did it go? We’d love to hear about your learning experience!

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